Virtualizing graphics processing in a provider network

ABSTRACT

Methods, systems, and computer-readable media for virtualizing graphics processing in a provider network are disclosed. A virtual compute instance is provisioned from a provider network. The provider network comprises a plurality of computing devices configured to implement a plurality of virtual compute instances with multi-tenancy. A virtual GPU is attached to the virtual compute instance. The virtual GPU is implemented using a physical GPU, and the physical GPU is accessible to the virtual compute instance over a network. An application is executed using the virtual GPU on the virtual compute instance. Executing the application generates virtual GPU output that is provided to a client device.

BACKGROUND

Many companies and other organizations operate computer networks thatinterconnect numerous computing systems to support their operations,such as with the computing systems being co-located (e.g., as part of alocal network) or instead located in multiple distinct geographicallocations (e.g., connected via one or more private or publicintermediate networks). For example, distributed systems housingsignificant numbers of interconnected computing systems have becomecommonplace. Such distributed systems may provide back-end services toservers that interact with clients. Such distributed systems may alsoinclude data centers that are operated by entities to provide computingresources to customers. Some data center operators provide networkaccess, power, and secure installation facilities for hardware owned byvarious customers, while other data center operators provide “fullservice” facilities that also include hardware resources made availablefor use by their customers. As the scale and scope of distributedsystems have increased, the tasks of provisioning, administering, andmanaging the resources have become increasingly complicated.

The advent of virtualization technologies for commodity hardware hasprovided benefits with respect to managing large-scale computingresources for many clients with diverse needs. For example,virtualization technologies may allow a single physical computing deviceto be shared among multiple users by providing each user with one ormore virtual machines hosted by the single physical computing device.Each such virtual machine may be a software simulation acting as adistinct logical computing system that provides users with the illusionthat they are the sole operators and administrators of a given hardwarecomputing resource, while also providing application isolation andsecurity among the various virtual machines. With virtualization, thesingle physical computing device can create, maintain, or delete virtualmachines in a dynamic manner.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an example system environment for virtualizinggraphics processing in a provider network, according to one embodiment.

FIG. 2A illustrates further aspects of the example system environmentfor virtualizing graphics processing in a provider network, includingselection of an instance type and virtual GPU class for a virtualcompute instance with an attached virtual GPU, according to oneembodiment.

FIG. 2B illustrates further aspects of the example system environmentfor virtualizing graphics processing in a provider network, includingprovisioning of a virtual compute instance with an attached virtual GPU,according to one embodiment.

FIG. 3 illustrates the use of a virtual compute instance with a virtualGPU to generate virtual GPU output for display on a client device,according to one embodiment.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example hardware architecture for implementingvirtualized graphics processing, according to one embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a method for virtualizing graphicsprocessing in a provider network, according to one embodiment.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example computing device that may be used in someembodiments.

While embodiments are described herein by way of example for severalembodiments and illustrative drawings, those skilled in the art willrecognize that embodiments are not limited to the embodiments ordrawings described. It should be understood, that the drawings anddetailed description thereto are not intended to limit embodiments tothe particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is tocover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within thespirit and scope as defined by the appended claims. The headings usedherein are for organizational purposes only and are not meant to be usedto limit the scope of the description or the claims. As used throughoutthis application, the word “may” is used in a permissive sense (i.e.,meaning “having the potential to”), rather than the mandatory sense(i.e., meaning “must”). Similarly, the words “include,” “including,” and“includes” mean “including, but not limited to.”

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Various embodiments of methods, systems, and computer-readable media forvirtualizing graphics processing in a provider network are described.Using the techniques described herein, a virtual compute instance may beprovisioned with an attached virtual graphics processing unit (GPU) toprovide accelerated graphics processing. The virtual GPU may be selectedfrom a set of virtual GPUs (or virtual GPU classes) having differentcapabilities for graphics processing. The virtual compute instance mayalso be selected from a set of virtual compute instances (or instancetypes) having different computational and/or memory resources. Thevirtual GPU may be implemented using a physical GPU that is connected tothe virtual compute instance over a network. The virtual computeinstance may be implemented using a physical compute instance thatincludes an interface device. The interface device may include a networkinterface and a custom hardware interface that emulates a GPU. Theinterface device may appear as the virtual GPU to the virtual computeinstance, and the virtual compute instance may use the interface deviceto offload graphics processing to the physical GPU over the network.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example system environment for virtualizinggraphics processing in a provider network, according to one embodiment.Clients of a provider network 100 may use computing devices such asclient devices 180A-180N to access an elastic graphics service 110 andother resources offered by the provider network. The client devices180A-180N may be coupled to the provider network 100 via one or morenetworks 190. The provider network 100 may provide computevirtualization 140 such that a plurality of virtual compute instances141A-141Z may be implemented using a plurality of physical computeinstances 142A-142N. The virtual compute instances 141A-141Z may also bereferred to herein as virtual machines (VMs). Similarly, the providernetwork 100 may provide GPU virtualization 150 such that a plurality ofvirtual GPUs 151A-151Z may be implemented using a plurality of physicalGPUs 152A-152N. An example hardware architecture for implementingvirtual GPUs using physical GPUs is discussed with reference to FIG. 5.The underlying physical compute instances 142A-142N may beheterogeneous, and the underlying physical GPUs 152A-152N may beheterogeneous as well. In one embodiment, the compute virtualization 140may use techniques for multi-tenancy to provision virtual computeinstances 141A-141Z that exceed the physical compute instances 142A-142Nin number. In one embodiment, the GPU virtualization 150 may usetechniques for multi-tenancy to provision virtual GPUs 151A-151Z thatexceed the physical GPUs 152A-152N in number.

The elastic graphics service 100 may offer, to clients, selection andprovisioning of virtualized compute instances with attached virtualizedGPUs. Accordingly, the elastic graphics service 100 may include aninstance type selection functionality 120 and an instance provisioningfunctionality 130. In one embodiment, the provider network 100 may offervirtual compute instances 141A-141Z with varying computational and/ormemory resources. In one embodiment, each of the virtual computeinstances 141A-141Z may correspond to one of several instance types. Aninstance type may be characterized by its computational resources (e.g.,number, type, and configuration of central processing units [CPUs] orCPU cores), memory resources (e.g., capacity, type, and configuration oflocal memory), storage resources (e.g., capacity, type, andconfiguration of locally accessible storage), network resources (e.g.,characteristics of its network interface and/or network capabilities),and/or other suitable descriptive characteristics. Using the instancetype selection functionality 120, an instance type may be selected for aclient, e.g., based (at least in part) on input from the client. Forexample, a client may choose an instance type from a predefined set ofinstance types. As another example, a client may specify the desiredresources of an instance type, and the instance type selectionfunctionality 120 may select an instance type based on such aspecification.

In one embodiment, the provider network 100 may offer virtual GPUs151A-151Z with varying graphics processing capabilities. In oneembodiment, each of the virtual GPUs 151A-151Z may correspond to one ofseveral virtual GPU classes. A virtual GPU class may be characterized byits computational resources for graphics processing, memory resourcesfor graphics processing, and/or other suitable descriptivecharacteristics. In one embodiment, the virtual GPU classes mayrepresent subdivisions of graphics processing capabilities of a physicalGPU, such as a full GPU, a half GPU, a quarter GPU, and so on. Using theinstance type selection functionality 120, a virtual GPU class may beselected for a client, e.g., based (at least in part) on input from theclient. For example, a client may choose a virtual GPU class from apredefined set of virtual GPU classes. As another example, a client mayspecify the desired resources of a virtual GPU class, and the instancetype selection functionality 120 may select a virtual GPU class based onsuch a specification.

Therefore, using the instance type selection functionality 120, clients(e.g., using client devices 180A-180N) may specify requirements forvirtual compute instances and virtual GPUs. The instance provisioningfunctionality 130 may provision virtual compute instances with attachedvirtual GPUs based on the specified requirements (including anyspecified instance types and virtual GPU classes). As used herein,provisioning a virtual compute instance generally includes reservingresources (e.g., computational and memory resources) of an underlyingphysical compute instance for the client (e.g., from a pool of availablephysical compute instances and other resources), installing or launchingrequired software (e.g., an operating system), and making the virtualcompute instance available to the client for performing tasks specifiedby the client. For a particular client, a virtual compute instance maybe provisioned of the instance type selected by or for the client, andthe virtual compute instance may be provisioned with an attached virtualGPU of the GPU class selected by or for the client. In one embodiment, avirtual GPU of substantially any virtual GPU class may be attached to avirtual compute instance of substantially any instance type.

The provider network 100 may be set up by an entity such as a company ora public sector organization to provide one or more services (such asvarious types of cloud-based computing or storage) accessible via theInternet and/or other networks to client devices 180A-180N. Providernetwork 100 may include numerous data centers hosting various resourcepools, such as collections of physical and/or virtualized computerservers, storage devices, networking equipment and the like (e.g.,implemented using computing system 3000 described below with regard toFIG. 6), needed to implement and distribute the infrastructure andservices offered by the provider network 100. In some embodiments,provider network 100 may provide computing resources, such as computevirtualization service 140 and GPU virtualization service 150; storageservices, such as a block-based storage service, key-value based datastores, or various types of database systems; and/or any other type ofnetwork-based services. Client devices 180A-180N may access thesevarious services offered by provider network 100 via network(s) 190.Likewise, network-based services may themselves communicate and/or makeuse of one another to provide different services. For example, computingresources offered to client devices 180A-180N in units called“instances,” such as virtual or physical compute instances or storageinstances, may make use of particular data volumes, providing virtualblock storage for the compute instances. The provider network 100 mayimplement or provide a multi-tenant environment such that multipleclients (e.g., using client devices 180A-180N) may access or use aparticular resource in a substantially simultaneous manner.

As noted above, compute virtualization service 140 may offer variousvirtual compute instances 141A-141Z to client devices 180A-180N. Avirtual compute instance may, for example, comprise one or more serverswith a specified computational capacity (which may be specified byindicating the type and number of CPUs, the main memory size, and so on)and a specified software stack (e.g., a particular version of anoperating system, which may in turn run on top of a hypervisor). Anumber of different types of computing devices may be used singly or incombination to implement the compute instances of the computevirtualization service 140 in different embodiments, including generalpurpose or special purpose computer servers, storage devices, networkdevices and the like. In some embodiments, client devices 180A-180N orother any other user may be configured (and/or authorized) to directnetwork traffic to a virtual compute instance. In various embodiments,virtual compute instances 141A-141Z may attach or map to one or moredata volumes provided by a storage service in order to obtain persistentstorage for performing various operations. Using the techniquesdescribed herein, virtual GPUs 151A-151Z may be attached to virtualcompute instances 141A-141Z to provide graphics processing for thevirtual compute instances.

Virtual compute instances 141A-141Z may operate or implement a varietyof different platforms, such as application server instances, Java™virtual machines (JVMs) or other virtual machines, general purpose orspecial-purpose operating systems, platforms that support variousinterpreted or compiled programming languages such as Ruby, Perl,Python, C, C++ and the like, or high-performance computing platforms)suitable for performing client applications, without for examplerequiring the client devices 180A-180N to access an instance. In someembodiments, virtual compute instances 141A-141Z may have differentinstance types or configurations based on expected uptime ratios. Theuptime ratio of a particular virtual compute instance may be defined asthe ratio of the amount of time the instance is activated to the totalamount of time for which the instance is reserved. Uptime ratios mayalso be referred to as utilizations in some implementations. If a clientexpects to use a compute instance for a relatively small fraction of thetime for which the instance is reserved (e.g., 30%-35% of a year-longreservation), the client may decide to reserve the instance as a LowUptime Ratio instance, and the client may pay a discounted hourly usagefee in accordance with the associated pricing policy. If the clientexpects to have a steady-state workload that requires an instance to beup most of the time, then the client may reserve a High Uptime Ratioinstance and potentially pay an even lower hourly usage fee, although insome embodiments the hourly fee may be charged for the entire durationof the reservation, regardless of the actual number of hours of use, inaccordance with pricing policy. An option for Medium Uptime Ratioinstances, with a corresponding pricing policy, may be supported in someembodiments as well, where the upfront costs and the per-hour costs fallbetween the corresponding High Uptime Ratio and Low Uptime Ratio costs.

Virtual compute instance configurations may also include virtual computeinstances with a general or specific purpose, such as computationalworkloads for compute intensive applications (e.g., high-traffic webapplications, ad serving, batch processing, video encoding, distributedanalytics, high-energy physics, genome analysis, and computational fluiddynamics), graphics intensive workloads (e.g., game streaming, 3Dapplication streaming, server-side graphics workloads, rendering,financial modeling, and engineering design), memory intensive workloads(e.g., high performance databases, distributed memory caches, in-memoryanalytics, genome assembly and analysis), and storage optimizedworkloads (e.g., data warehousing and cluster file systems). In someembodiments, particular instance types for virtual compute instances maybe associated with default classes for virtual GPUs. For example, someinstance types may be configured without a virtual GPU as a defaultconfiguration, while other instance types designated for graphicsintensive workloads may be designated with particular virtual GPUclasses as a default configuration. Configurations of virtual computeinstances may also include their location in a particular data center oravailability zone, geographic location, and (in the case of reservedcompute instances) reservation term length.

The client devices 180A-180N may represent or correspond to variousclients or users of the provider network 100, such as customers who seekto use services offered by the provider network. The clients, users, orcustomers may represent persons, businesses, other organizations, and/orother entities. The client devices 180A-180N may be distributed over anysuitable locations or regions. Each of the client devices 180A-180N maybe implemented using one or more computing devices, any of which may beimplemented by the example computing device 3000 illustrated in FIG. 6.

The client devices 180A-180N may encompass any type of clientconfigurable to submit requests to provider network 100. For example, agiven client device may include a suitable version of a web browser, orit may include a plug-in module or other type of code module configuredto execute as an extension to or within an execution environmentprovided by a web browser. Alternatively, a client device may encompassan application such as a database application (or user interfacethereof), a media application, an office application, or any otherapplication that may make use of virtual compute instances, storagevolumes, or other network-based services in provider network 100 toperform various operations. In some embodiments, such an application mayinclude sufficient protocol support (e.g., for a suitable version ofHypertext Transfer Protocol [HTTP]) for generating and processingnetwork-based service requests without necessarily implementing fullbrowser support for all types of network-based data. In someembodiments, client devices 180A-180N may be configured to generatenetwork-based service requests according to a Representational StateTransfer (REST)-style network-based services architecture, a document-or message-based network-based services architecture, or anothersuitable network-based services architecture. In some embodiments,client devices 180A-180N (e.g., a computational client) may beconfigured to provide access to a virtual compute instance in a mannerthat is transparent to applications implement on the client deviceutilizing computational resources provided by the virtual computeinstance. In at least some embodiments, client devices 180A-180N mayprovision, mount, and configure storage volumes implemented at storageservices for file systems implemented at the client devices.

Client devices 180A-180N may convey network-based service requests toprovider network 100 via external network(s) 190. In variousembodiments, external network(s) 190 may encompass any suitablecombination of networking hardware and protocols necessary to establishnetwork-based communications between client devices 180A-180N andprovider network 100. For example, the network(s) 190 may generallyencompass the various telecommunications networks and service providersthat collectively implement the Internet. The network(s) 190 may alsoinclude private networks such as local area networks (LANs) or wide areanetworks (WANs) as well as public or private wireless networks. Forexample, both a given client device and the provider network 100 may berespectively provisioned within enterprises having their own internalnetworks. In such an embodiment, the network(s) 190 may include thehardware (e.g., modems, routers, switches, load balancers, proxyservers, etc.) and software (e.g., protocol stacks, accounting software,firewall/security software, etc.) necessary to establish a networkinglink between the given client device and the Internet as well as betweenthe Internet and the provider network 100. It is noted that in someembodiments, client devices 180A-180N may communicate with providernetwork 100 using a private network rather than the public Internet.

The provider network 100 may include a plurality of computing devices,any of which may be implemented by the example computing device 3000illustrated in FIG. 6. In various embodiments, portions of the describedfunctionality of the provider network 100 may be provided by the samecomputing device or by any suitable number of different computingdevices. If any of the components of the provider network 100 areimplemented using different computing devices, then the components andtheir respective computing devices may be communicatively coupled, e.g.,via a network. Each of the illustrated components (such as the elasticgraphics service 110 and its constituent functionalities 120 and 130)may represent any combination of software and hardware usable to performtheir respective functions.

It is contemplated that the provider network 100 may include additionalcomponents not shown, fewer components than shown, or differentcombinations, configurations, or quantities of the components shown. Forexample, although physical compute instances 142A through 142N are shownfor purposes of example and illustration, it is contemplated thatdifferent quantities and configurations of physical compute instancesmay be used. Similarly, although physical GPUs 152A through 152N areshown for purposes of example and illustration, it is contemplated thatdifferent quantities and configurations of physical GPUs may be used.Additionally, although three client devices 180A, 180B, and 180N areshown for purposes of example and illustration, it is contemplated thatdifferent quantities and configurations of client devices may be used.Aspects of the functionality described herein for providing virtualizedgraphics processing may be performed, at least in part, by componentsoutside of the provider network 100.

FIG. 2A illustrates further aspects of the example system environmentfor virtualizing graphics processing in a provider network, includingselection of an instance type and virtual GPU class for a virtualcompute instance with an attached virtual GPU, according to oneembodiment. As discussed above, the provider network 100 may offer tothe client device 180A a plurality of instance types 121 for virtualcompute instances. As shown for purposes of illustration and example,virtual compute instances of type “B” 141B through type “N” 141N may beoffered. However, it is contemplated that any suitable number andconfiguration of virtual compute instance types may be offered toclients by the provider network 100. An instance type may becharacterized by its computational resources (e.g., number, type, andconfiguration of central processing units [CPUs] or CPU cores), memoryresources (e.g., capacity, type, and configuration of local memory),storage resources (e.g., capacity, type, and configuration of locallyaccessible storage), network resources (e.g., characteristics of itsnetwork interface and/or network capabilities), and/or other suitabledescriptive characteristics. Using the instance type selectionfunctionality 120, the client device 180A may provide an indication,specification, or other selection 201 of a particular instance type. Forexample, a client may choose or the instance type “B” from a predefinedset of instance types using input 201. As another example, a client mayspecify the desired resources of an instance type using input 201, andthe instance type selection functionality 120 may select the instancetype “B” based on such a specification. Accordingly, the virtual computeinstance type may be selected by the client or on behalf of the client,e.g., using the instance type selection functionality 120.

As discussed above, the provider network 100 may offer to the clientdevice 180A a plurality of virtual GPU classes 122 for virtual GPUs. Asshown for purposes of illustration and example, virtual GPUs of class“B” 151B through class “N” 151N may be offered. However, it iscontemplated that any suitable number and configuration of virtual GPUclasses may be offered to clients by the provider network 100. A virtualGPU class may be characterized by its computational resources forgraphics processing, memory resources for graphics processing, and/orother suitable descriptive characteristics. In one embodiment, thevirtual GPU classes may represent subdivisions of graphics processingcapabilities of a physical GPU, such as a full GPU, a half GPU, aquarter GPU, and so on. Using the instance type selection functionality120, the client device 180A may provide an indication, specification, orother selection 202 of a particular virtual GPU class. For example, aclient may choose the virtual GPU class “B” from a predefined set ofvirtual GPU classes using input 202. As another example, a client mayspecify the desired resources of a virtual GPU class using input 202,and the instance type selection functionality 120 may select the virtualGPU class “B” based on such a specification. Accordingly, the virtualGPU class may be selected by the client or on behalf of the client,e.g., using the instance type selection functionality 120.

FIG. 2B illustrates further aspects of the example system environmentfor virtualizing graphics processing in a provider network, includingprovisioning of a virtual compute instance with an attached virtual GPU,according to one embodiment. The instance provisioning functionality 130may provision a virtual compute instance 141B with an attached virtualGPU 151B based on the specified instance type “B” and the specifiedvirtual GPU class “B”. The provisioned virtual compute instance 141B maybe implemented by the compute virtualization functionality 140 usingsuitable physical resources such as a physical compute instance 142B,and the provisioned virtual GPU 151B may be implemented by the GPUvirtualization functionality 150 using suitable physical resources suchas a physical GPU 152B. As used herein, provisioning a virtual computeinstance generally includes reserving resources (e.g., computational andmemory resources) of an underlying physical compute instance for theclient (e.g., from a pool of available physical compute instances andother resources), installing or launching required software (e.g., anoperating system), and making the virtual compute instance available tothe client for performing tasks specified by the client. In oneembodiment, a virtual GPU of substantially any virtual GPU class may beattached to a virtual compute instance of substantially any instancetype. To implement the virtual compute instance 141B with the attachedvirtual GPU 151B, a physical compute instance 142B may communicate witha physical GPU 152B, e.g., over a network. The physical GPU 152B may belocated in a different computing device than the physical computeinstance 142B. Even though they may be implemented using separatehardware, the virtual GPU 151B may be said to be attached to the virtualcompute instance 141B, or the virtual compute instance may be said toinclude the virtual GPU. The virtual GPU 151B may be installed on adevice that may reside in various locations relative to the physical GPU152B, e.g., on the same rack, the same switch, the same room, and/orother suitable locations on the same network. A vendor of the physicalGPU 152B may be hidden from the client device 180A.

FIG. 3 illustrates the use of a virtual compute instance with a virtualGPU to generate virtual GPU output for display on a client device,according to one embodiment. After the virtual compute instance 141B isprovisioned with the attached virtual GPU 151B, the client device 180Amay use the provisioned instance and virtual GPU to perform any suitabletasks, e.g., based on input from the client device. The virtual computeinstance 141B may execute a particular application 320. The application320 may be selected or provided by the client. The virtual computeinstance 141B may also be configured with a particular operating system322 that provides support for the application 321. Additionally, thevirtual compute instance 141B may be configured with a particulargraphics driver 321. The graphics driver 321 may interact with thevirtual GPU 151B to provide graphics processing for the application 320,including accelerated two-dimensional graphics processing and/oraccelerated three-dimensional graphics processing. In one embodiment,the graphics driver 321 may implement a graphics application programminginterface (API) such as Direct3D or OpenGL. The graphics driver 321 mayrepresent components running in user mode and/or kernel mode. Additionalcomponents (not shown), such as a graphics runtime, may also be used toprovide accelerated graphics processing on the virtual compute instance141B.

The client device 180A may communicate with the virtual compute instance141B through a proxy 310. Various other communications may be sentthrough the proxy 310, including for example virtual GPU output 302 fromthe virtual GPU 151B to the client device 180A. Use of the proxy 310 mayhide the address of the virtual compute instance and any associatedresources (including a computing device that implements the virtual GPU151B) from the client device 180A. The proxy 310 and virtual computeinstance 141B may communicate using a suitable remoting protocol. Invarious embodiments, the proxy 310 may or may not be part of theprovider network 100. The client device 180A may provide applicationinput 301 to the application 320 running on the virtual compute instance141B. For example, the application input 301 may include data to beoperated upon by the application 320 and/or instructions to control theexecution of the application.

Using the graphics processing provided by the virtual GPU 151B,execution of the application may generate virtual GPU output 302. Thevirtual GPU output 302 may be provided to the client device 180A, e.g.,from the virtual GPU 151B or virtual compute instance 141B. In oneembodiment, the virtual GPU output 302 may be sent from the virtual GPU151B (e.g., from a computing device that includes the virtual GPU) tothe client device 180A while bypassing the rest of the virtual computeinstance 141B (e.g., the underlying physical compute instance 142B). Thevirtual GPU output 302 may also be sent to the client device 180Athrough the proxy 310. The proxy 310 and virtual GPU 151B maycommunicate using a suitable remoting protocol. In one embodiment, thevirtual GPU output 302 may be returned to the virtual compute instance141B, and the virtual compute instance may send the virtual GPU outputto the client device 180A. In one embodiment, the client device 180A mayforward the virtual GPU output 302 to another component.

In one embodiment, a display device 181 associated with the clientdevice 180A may present a display 330 of the virtual GPU output 302. Inone embodiment, the virtual GPU output 302 may include pixel data, imagedata, video data, or other graphical data. In one embodiment, thevirtual GPU output 302 may drive a full-screen display on the displaydevice 181. Portions of the virtual GPU output 302 may be streamed tothe client device 180A over time. In one embodiment, the virtual GPUoutput 302 may be composited with one or more other sources of graphicaldata to produce the display 330. In one embodiment, the virtual GPU 151Bmay be used for general-purpose computing (e.g., GPGPU computing), andthe virtual GPU output 302 may not include pixel data or other graphicaldata. In various embodiments, the client device 180A may process ortransform all or part of the virtual GPU output 302 before displayingthe output. For example, a CPU, GPU, or co-processor on the clientdevice 180A may transform portions of the virtual GPU output 302 anddisplay the results on the display device 181.

In various embodiments, any suitable technique(s) may be used to offloadgraphics processing from a virtual compute instance to a physical GPU.In one embodiment, an API shim may intercept calls to a graphics API andmarshal the calls over a network to an external computing device thatincludes a physical GPU. In one embodiment, a driver shim may surface aproprietary driver to the virtual compute instance, intercept calls, andmarshal the calls over a network to an external computing device thatincludes a physical GPU. In one embodiment, a hardware shim may surfacea hardware interface to the virtual compute instance and marshalattempts by the instance to interact with the physical GPU.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example hardware architecture for implementingvirtualized graphics processing, according to one embodiment. In oneembodiment, the virtual compute instance 141B may be implemented using aphysical compute instance 142B, and the virtual GPU 151B attached tothat instance 141B may be implemented using a separate and distinctcomputing device termed a graphics server 420. The virtual computeinstance 141B may use a virtual interface 400 to interact with aninterface device 410. The virtual interface 400 may enable the virtualcompute instance 141B to send and receive network data. The interfacedevice 410 may include a network interface and a custom hardwareinterface. Via the custom hardware interface, the interface device 410may run program code to emulate a GPU interface and appear to thevirtual compute instance 141B to implement or include the virtual GPU151B. In one embodiment, the interface device 410 may present a graphicsAPI to the virtual compute instance 141B and receive API calls forgraphics processing (e.g., accelerated 3D graphics processing). Via thenetwork interface, the interface device 410 may communicate with thegraphics server 420 (and thus with the physical GPU 152B) over anetwork. The interface device 410 may be implemented in any suitablemanner, e.g., as an expansion card (such as a PCI Express card) orattached peripheral device for the physical compute instance 142B. Theinterface device 410 may use single root I/O virtualization to exposehardware virtual functions to the virtual compute instance 141B. In oneembodiment, the physical compute instance 142B may implement a pluralityof virtual compute instances, each with its own virtual interface, andthe virtual compute instances may use the interface device 410 tointeract with the corresponding virtual GPUs on one or more graphicsservers. The physical compute instance 142B may communicate with theproxy 310 using a suitable remoting protocol, e.g., to send data to andreceive data from the client device 180A.

Graphics offload performed by the interface device 410 (e.g., byexecuting custom program code on the interface device) may translategraphics API commands into network traffic (encapsulating the graphicsAPI commands) that is transmitted to the graphics server 420, and thegraphics server 420 may execute the commands on behalf of the interfacedevice. The graphics server 420 may include a network adapter 440 thatcommunicates with the interface device 410 (e.g., with the networkinterface of the interface device) over a network. In one embodiment,the interface device 410 may receive calls to a graphics API (using thecustom hardware interface) and generate graphics offload traffic to besent to the network adapter 440 (using the network interface). Thegraphics server 410 may implement a graphics virtual machine 430. Anysuitable technologies for virtualization may be used to implement thegraphics virtual machine 430. In one embodiment, the graphics virtualmachine 430 may represent a generic virtual machine that is GPU-capableand is dedicated to providing accelerated graphics processing using oneor more virtual GPUs. The graphics virtual machine 430 may be coupled tothe network adapter 440 using a virtual interface 401. The virtualinterface 401 may enable the graphics virtual machine 430 to send andreceive network data. The graphics virtual machine 430 may implement thevirtual GPU 151B using the graphics processing capabilities of thephysical GPU 152B. In one embodiment, the physical GPU 152B can beaccessed directly by the graphics virtual machine 430, and the physicalGPU 152B can use direct memory access to write to and read from memorymanaged by the graphics virtual machine. In one embodiment, the graphicsserver 420 may implement a plurality of virtual GPUs (such as virtualGPU 151B) using one or more physical GPUs (such as physical GPU 152B),and the virtual GPUs may interact with the corresponding virtual computeinstances on one or more physical compute instances over a network. Thegraphics server 420 may communicate with the proxy 310 using a suitableremoting protocol, e.g., to send data to and receive data from theclient device 180A. For example, the graphics server 420 may generatevirtual GPU output based on the commands sent from the interface device410. The virtual GPU output may be provided to the client device 180Athrough the proxy 310, e.g., from the physical compute instance 142B orgraphics server 420.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a method for virtualizing graphicsprocessing in a provider network, according to one embodiment. As shownin 505, a virtual compute instance may be selected. The virtual computeinstance may be selected based (at least in part) on computational andmemory resources provided by the virtual compute instance. For example,the virtual compute instance may be selected based (at least in part) ona selection of an instance type by a user. As shown in 510, a virtualGPU may be selected. The virtual GPU may be selected based (at least inpart) on graphics processing capabilities provided by the virtual GPU.For example, the virtual GPU may be selected based (at least in part) ona selection of a virtual GPU class by a user. The virtual computeinstance and virtual GPU may also be selected based (at least in part)on availability of resources in a resource pool of a provider networkthat manages such resources. In one embodiment, an elastic graphicsservice may receive the specifications for and/or selections of thevirtual compute instance and virtual GPU.

As shown in 515, the selected virtual compute instance may beprovisioned with the selected virtual GPU attached. In one embodiment,the elastic graphics service may interact with one or more otherservices or functionalities of a provider network, such as a computevirtualization functionality and/or GPU virtualization functionality, toprovision the instance with the virtual GPU. The virtual computeinstance may be implemented using central processing unit (CPU)resources and memory resources of a physical compute instance. Thevirtual GPU may be implemented using a physical GPU. The physical GPUmay be attached to a different computing device than the computingdevice that provides the CPU resources for the virtual compute instance.The physical GPU may be accessible to the physical compute instance overa network. The virtual GPU may be said to be attached to the virtualcompute instance, or the virtual compute instance may be said to includethe virtual GPU. In one embodiment, the physical GPU may be sharedbetween the virtual GPU and one or more additional virtual GPUs, and theadditional virtual GPUs may be attached to additional virtual computeinstances. In one embodiment, the virtual GPU may be accessible to thevirtual compute instance via an interface device that includes a networkinterface and a custom hardware interface. Via the custom hardwareinterface, the interface device may emulate a GPU and appear to thevirtual compute instance to include the virtual GPU. Via the networkinterface, the interface device may communicate with the physical GPUover the network.

As shown in 520, an application may be executed on the virtual computeinstance using the virtual GPU. Execution of the application may includeexecution of instructions on the virtual compute instance (e.g., on theunderlying physical compute instance) and/or virtual GPU (e.g., on theunderlying physical GPU). Execution of the application using the virtualGPU may generate virtual GPU output, e.g., output produced by executinginstructions or otherwise performing tasks on the virtual GPU. As shownin 525, the virtual GPU output may be provided to a client device. Thevirtual GPU output may be provided to the client device from the virtualcompute instance or virtual GPU. In one embodiment, the virtual GPUoutput may be displayed on a display device associated with the clientdevice. The virtual GPU output may include pixel information or othergraphical data that is displayed on the display device. Execution of theapplication using the virtual GPU may include graphics processing (e.g.,acceleration of three-dimensional graphics processing) for theapplication using a graphics API.

Illustrative Computer System

In at least some embodiments, a computer system that implements aportion or all of one or more of the technologies described herein mayinclude a general-purpose computer system that includes or is configuredto access one or more computer-readable media. FIG. 6 illustrates such ageneral-purpose computing device 3000. In the illustrated embodiment,computing device 3000 includes one or more processors 3010 coupled to asystem memory 3020 via an input/output (I/O) interface 3030. Computingdevice 3000 further includes a network interface 3040 coupled to I/Ointerface 3030.

In various embodiments, computing device 3000 may be a uniprocessorsystem including one processor 3010 or a multiprocessor system includingseveral processors 3010 (e.g., two, four, eight, or another suitablenumber). Processors 3010 may include any suitable processors capable ofexecuting instructions. For example, in various embodiments, processors3010 may be general-purpose or embedded processors implementing any of avariety of instruction set architectures (ISAs), such as the x86,PowerPC, SPARC, or MIPS ISAs, or any other suitable ISA. Inmultiprocessor systems, each of processors 3010 may commonly, but notnecessarily, implement the same ISA.

System memory 3020 may be configured to store program instructions anddata accessible by processor(s) 3010. In various embodiments, systemmemory 3020 may be implemented using any suitable memory technology,such as static random access memory (SRAM), synchronous dynamic RAM(SDRAM), nonvolatile/Flash-type memory, or any other type of memory. Inthe illustrated embodiment, program instructions and data implementingone or more desired functions, such as those methods, techniques, anddata described above, are shown stored within system memory 3020 as code(i.e., program instructions) 3025 and data 3026.

In one embodiment, I/O interface 3030 may be configured to coordinateI/O traffic between processor 3010, system memory 3020, and anyperipheral devices in the device, including network interface 3040 orother peripheral interfaces. In some embodiments, I/O interface 3030 mayperform any necessary protocol, timing or other data transformations toconvert data signals from one component (e.g., system memory 3020) intoa format suitable for use by another component (e.g., processor 3010).In some embodiments, I/O interface 3030 may include support for devicesattached through various types of peripheral buses, such as a variant ofthe Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus standard or theUniversal Serial Bus (USB) standard, for example. In some embodiments,the function of I/O interface 3030 may be split into two or moreseparate components, such as a north bridge and a south bridge, forexample. Also, in some embodiments some or all of the functionality ofI/O interface 3030, such as an interface to system memory 3020, may beincorporated directly into processor 3010.

Network interface 3040 may be configured to allow data to be exchangedbetween computing device 3000 and other devices 3060 attached to anetwork or networks 3050. In various embodiments, network interface 3040may support communication via any suitable wired or wireless generaldata networks, such as types of Ethernet network, for example.Additionally, network interface 3040 may support communication viatelecommunications/telephony networks such as analog voice networks ordigital fiber communications networks, via storage area networks such asFibre Channel SANs, or via any other suitable type of network and/orprotocol.

In some embodiments, system memory 3020 may be one embodiment of acomputer-readable (i.e., computer-accessible) medium configured to storeprogram instructions and data as described above for implementingembodiments of the corresponding methods and apparatus. However, inother embodiments, program instructions and/or data may be received,sent or stored upon different types of computer-readable media.Generally speaking, a computer-readable medium may includenon-transitory storage media or memory media such as magnetic or opticalmedia, e.g., disk or DVD/CD coupled to computing device 3000 via I/Ointerface 3030. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium mayalso include any volatile or non-volatile media such as RAM (e.g. SDRAM,DDR SDRAM, RDRAM, SRAM, etc.), ROM, etc., that may be included in someembodiments of computing device 3000 as system memory 3020 or anothertype of memory. Further, a computer-readable medium may includetransmission media or signals such as electrical, electromagnetic, ordigital signals, conveyed via a communication medium such as a networkand/or a wireless link, such as may be implemented via network interface3040. Portions or all of multiple computing devices such as thatillustrated in FIG. 6 may be used to implement the describedfunctionality in various embodiments; for example, software componentsrunning on a variety of different devices and servers may collaborate toprovide the functionality. In some embodiments, portions of thedescribed functionality may be implemented using storage devices,network devices, or special-purpose computer systems, in addition to orinstead of being implemented using general-purpose computer systems. Theterm “computing device,” as used herein, refers to at least all thesetypes of devices, and is not limited to these types of devices.

The various methods as illustrated in the Figures and described hereinrepresent examples of embodiments of methods. The methods may beimplemented in software, hardware, or a combination thereof. In variousones of the methods, the order of the steps may be changed, and variouselements may be added, reordered, combined, omitted, modified, etc.Various ones of the steps may be performed automatically (e.g., withoutbeing directly prompted by user input) and/or programmatically (e.g.,according to program instructions).

The terminology used in the description of the invention herein is forthe purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is notintended to be limiting of the invention. As used in the description ofthe invention and the appended claims, the singular forms “a”, “an” and“the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless thecontext clearly indicates otherwise. It will also be understood that theterm “and/or” as used herein refers to and encompasses any and allpossible combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. Itwill be further understood that the terms “includes,” “including,”“comprises,” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification,specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations,elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence oraddition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations,elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

As used herein, the term “if” may be construed to mean “when” or “upon”or “in response to determining” or “in response to detecting,” dependingon the context. Similarly, the phrase “if it is determined” or “if [astated condition or event] is detected” may be construed to mean “upondetermining” or “in response to determining” or “upon detecting [thestated condition or event]” or “in response to detecting [the statedcondition or event],” depending on the context.

It will also be understood that, although the terms first, second, etc.,may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements shouldnot be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguishone element from another. For example, a first contact could be termed asecond contact, and, similarly, a second contact could be termed a firstcontact, without departing from the scope of the present invention. Thefirst contact and the second contact are both contacts, but they are notthe same contact.

Numerous specific details are set forth herein to provide a thoroughunderstanding of claimed subject matter. However, it will be understoodby those skilled in the art that claimed subject matter may be practicedwithout these specific details. In other instances, methods, apparatus,or systems that would be known by one of ordinary skill have not beendescribed in detail so as not to obscure claimed subject matter. Variousmodifications and changes may be made as would be obvious to a personskilled in the art having the benefit of this disclosure. It is intendedto embrace all such modifications and changes and, accordingly, theabove description is to be regarded in an illustrative rather than arestrictive sense.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system, comprising: central processing unit(CPU) resources and memory resources of a physical compute instanceconfigured to host at least one virtual compute instance of a serviceprovider comprising a multi-tenant environment that provides computeservices from a service provider network to a plurality of distinctclient devices for clients of the service provider; a physical graphicsprocessing unit (GPU), located in a different computing device than thephysical compute instance that provides the CPU resources for thevirtual compute instance, and accessible to the physical computeinstance over a network; one or more computing devices configured toimplement an elastic graphics service configured to provide virtual GPUsof a plurality of different virtual GPU classes, each of the differentvirtual GPU classes having different capabilities for graphicsprocessing based at least in part on computational or memory resources,wherein the elastic graphics service is configured to: receive, from aclient of the clients of the service provider, a specification toprovision a virtual compute instance, the specification comprising aselection of a virtual GPU class from the plurality of different classesof virtual GPU classes; provision, on behalf of the client responsive tothe receiving, a virtual compute instance implemented by the physicalcompute instance and a virtual GPU of the virtual GPU class selected bythe client such that the provisioned virtual GPU is attached to theprovisioned virtual compute instance over the network, wherein theprovisioned virtual GPU is implemented using the physical GPU to providegraphics processing capabilities of the selected virtual GPU class tothe provisioned virtual compute instance over the network; wherein theprovisioned virtual compute instance is configured to: execute anapplication using, over the network, the attached virtual GPU, whereinexecution of the application causes the virtual GPU to generate pixeloutput, and wherein the pixel output is transmitted over a network fordisplay on a display device of a client device of the plurality ofclient devices.
 2. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein thephysical GPU is shared between the virtual GPU and one or moreadditional virtual GPUs.
 3. The system as recited in claim 1, furthercomprising: a device comprising a network interface and a hardwareinterface, wherein the virtual GPU is accessible to the virtual computeinstance via the device, wherein the device appears to the virtualcompute instance to comprise the virtual GPU via the hardware interface,and wherein the device communicates with the physical GPU via thenetwork interface.
 4. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein, inexecuting the application using the virtual GPU, the virtual computeinstance is configured to provide graphics processing using a graphicsapplication programming interface (API).
 5. A computer-implementedmethod, comprising: receiving, from a client by an elastic graphicsservice configured to provide virtual graphics processing units of aplurality of different virtual graphics processing unit GPU classes, aspecification to provision a virtual compute instance, the specificationcomprising a selection of a virtual graphics processing unit (GPU) classfrom a plurality of different classes of virtual GPU classes, each classhaving different capabilities for graphics processing based at least inpart on computational or memory resources, wherein the multi-tenantprovider network comprises a plurality of computing devices configuredto provide central processing unit (CPU) resources to implement aplurality of virtual compute instances that provide compute servicesover one or more networks to a plurality of distinct client devices ofclients of the service provider; provisioning, for the client responsiveto the receiving, the virtual compute instance from the multi-tenantprovider network with a virtual graphics processing unit of the virtualGPU class selected by the client, the virtual GPU attached to thevirtual compute instance and implemented on a physical GPU to providegraphics processing capabilities of the selected virtual GPU class tothe virtual compute instance over a network, wherein the virtual GPU isimplemented using a physical GPU that is located in a differentcomputing device than a device of the plurality of computing devicesthat provides CPU resources to implement the virtual compute instance,and wherein the physical GPU is accessible to the virtual computeinstance over a network; and executing, by the virtual compute instance,an application using, over the network, the virtual GPU attached to theprovisioned virtual compute instance, wherein executing the applicationcauses the virtual GPU to generate virtual GPU output that istransmitted over a network to a client device.
 6. The method as recitedin claim 5, wherein the virtual GPU output comprises image information.7. The method as recited in claim 5, wherein the virtual GPU output isprovided to the client device from the virtual compute instance or fromthe virtual GPU.
 8. The method as recited in claim 5, wherein thephysical GPU is shared between the virtual GPU and one or moreadditional virtual GPUs.
 9. The method as recited in claim 5, furthercomprising: selecting a virtual GPU class for the virtual GPU from aplurality of virtual GPU classes, wherein the virtual GPU classes varyin respective computational resources or memory resources, and whereinthe virtual GPU class is selected based at least in part on therespective computational resources or memory resources provided by thevirtual GPU class.
 10. The method as recited in claim 5, wherein theplurality of virtual compute instances include a plurality of instancetypes with varying computational resources or memory resources, andwherein an instance type for the virtual compute instance is selectedbased at least in part on computational resources or memory resourcesprovided by the instance type.
 11. The method as recited in claim 5,wherein the virtual GPU is accessible to the virtual compute instancevia a device comprising an interface, wherein the device appears to thevirtual compute instance to comprise the virtual GPU via the interface.12. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing programinstructions computer-executable to perform: receiving, from a client ofa plurality of clients of the compute services, a specification toprovision a virtual compute instance, the specification comprising aselection of a virtual graphics processing unit (GPU) class from aplurality of different classes of virtual GPU classes, each class havingdifferent capabilities for graphics processing based at least in part oncomputational or memory resources; selecting a virtual compute instanceimplemented via central processing unit (CPU) resources of a physicalcompute instance of a multi-tenant provider network that providescompute services over one or more networks to a plurality of distinctclient devices for clients of the multi-tenant provider network, whereinthe virtual compute instance is selected based at least in part on thereceived specification and resources provided by the virtual computeinstance; and provisioning, for the client responsive to the receiving,the virtual compute instance with a virtual GPU of the virtual GPU classselected by the client, the virtual GPU attached to the virtual computeinstance over the network to provide graphics processing capabilities ofthe selected virtual GPU class to the virtual compute instance; wherein:the virtual GPU is accessible to the physical compute instance over anetwork, the virtual GPU is implemented via a physical graphicsprocessor of the multi-tenant provider network, and the physicalgraphics processor is located in a different computing device than thephysical computing device that provides the CPU resources to implementthe virtual compute instance.
 13. The non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium as recited in claim 12, wherein an application isexecuted using the virtual GPU on the virtual compute instance, whereinexecution of the application generates virtual GPU output, and whereinthe virtual GPU output is provided to a client device.
 14. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 13,wherein the virtual GPU output comprises pixel information, and whereinthe pixel information is displayed on a display device associated withthe client device.
 15. The non-transitory computer-readable storagemedium as recited in claim 13, wherein execution of the applicationusing the virtual GPU comprises providing graphics processing using agraphics application programming interface (API).
 16. The non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 12, wherein thephysical GPU is shared between the virtual GPU and one or moreadditional virtual GPUs.
 17. The non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium as recited in claim 12, wherein the virtual GPU isaccessible to the virtual compute instance via a device comprising aninterface, wherein the device appears to the virtual compute instance tocomprise the virtual GPU via the interface.
 18. The non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium as recited in claim 12, wherein thevirtual compute instance and the virtual GPU are selected based at leastin part on user input from a user of the multi-tenant provider network.